Carla Marinucci: Fred Thompson cancels SoCal fundraisers

Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson’s presidential campaign — sensitive to criticism that it has ignored the effects of California’s wildfires — has cancelled fundraising events in devastated Southern California, where he had been expected to appear in Newport Beach and San Juan Capistrano starting Monday.

Instead, the Republican candidate will make his first trip as a formal candidate to the Bay Area next week for fundraisers and campaign events.

Thompson’s official campaign statement this morning: “Out of respect for the families in Southern California who have suffered devastation from the California wildfires, Sen. Fred Thompson is postponing his events in those counties. He will proceed with events in Northern California as scheduled on Tuesday and Wednesday.”

We’ve already received the invites for Thompson’s Los Gatos and San Francisco fundraisers on Wednesday. He’ll have breakfast in the home of Ken and Linda Raasch in Los Gatos, then be the star at a luncheon fundraiser — $2,300 per person for a “private greeting,” $1,000 for a photo opportunity and $250 for a regular ticket — at the Four Seasons Hotel on Market Street.